Cigarette making machine

ABSTRACT

A cigarette making machine of the domestic do-it-yourself variety wherein a wad of tobacco of elongate generally cylindrical shape is injected into a cigarette paper tube is disclosed. Machines of this type utilize a cam plate operable upon a toggle link means consisting of a toggle arm and toggle links with movement of the toggle link means moving a tobacco compacting member to tobacco receiving and tobacco compacting positions. There is a first pair of toggle links having their outer ends pivotally secured to casing of the machine, with outer ends of a second pair of toggle links pivotally secured to the tobacco compacting member with the inner ends of both first and second pairs of toggle links being pivotally secured to the toggle arm which is moved by the cam plate. The inventive concept resides in molding the toggle arm, toggle links, casing, and tobacco compacting member from plastic material and providing circular bearing surfaces on the casing, toggle links, and tobacco compacting member to bear forces resulting from the compaction of a supply of tobacco into a wad. By molding the circular bearing surfaces integral with the various component parts involved, it is thus possible to produce a machine substantially completely molded from plastic material and this results in quicker and more economically produced machines inasmuch as the precise machining of individual metal parts is not necessary.

June 3, 1975 United States Patent [1 1 Kastner paper tube is disclosed.Machines of this type utilize a Arnold Kasmer, 10220 Armand cam plateoperable upon a toggle link means consist- Lavergne Montreal North,Quebec, ing of a toggle arm and toggle links with movement of Canada thetoggle link means moving a tobacco compacting member to tobaccoreceiving and tobacco compacting 1974 positions. There is a first pairof toggle links having their outer ends pivotally secured to casing ofthe machine, with outer ends of a second pair of toggle links pivotallysecured to the tobacco compacting member 131/70 with the inner ends ofboth first and second pairs of A246 toggle links being pivotally securedto the toggle arm CIGARETTE MAKING MACHINE [76] Inventor:

[22] Filed:

[2]] Appl. No.: 441,956

[52] US. Cl'.

[51] Int.

[58] Field Of Search........................... which is moved by thecam plate, The inventive concept resides in molding the toggle arm,toggle links,

[56] References Cited casing, and tobacco compacting member from plasticUNITED STATES PATENTS material and providing circular bearing surfaceson the casing, toggle links, and tobacco compacting member to bearforces resulting from the compaction of a supply of tobacco into a wad.By molding the circular bearing surfaces integral with the variouscomponent parts involved, it is thus possible to produce a machinesubstantially completely molded from plastic material and this resultsin quicker and more economically produced machines inasmuch as theprecise ma- ABSTRACT A cigarette making machine of the domestic do-it-///2 .111 333/ I111 n m Tm n. t mmm :5

mmn SSyp 333a KKPK 6403 5677. 9999 111.1 1411 10 1 706 1 1 3294 2333Primary ExaminerRobert W. Michell Assistant ExaminerJohn F. Pitrellichining of individual metal parts is not necessary.

yourself variety wherein a wad of tobacco of elongate generallycylindrical shape is injected into a cigarette 6 Claims, 5 DrawingFigures SHEET FIG.

FIG. 5

CIGARETTE MAKING MACHINE The present invention relates to manuallyoperated cigarette making machines and particularly, but notexclusively, relates to cigarette making machines of the domesticdo-it-yourself variety of the type disclosed in my Canadian Pat. No.723,945 dated Dec. 21, 1965, and entitled Adjustable Tube ReleaseMechanism for a Cigarette Making Machine and in my Canadian Pat. No.643,473, dated June 26, 1962, and entitled Cigarette Machine.

In a machine according to the present invention, and in accordance withthese two Canadian patents, a cigarette is obtained by positioning atube of cigarette paper onto a nipple provided on the machine, andpositioning a small supply of tobacco in an opening provided in thecasing of the machine, with rotation of a handle on the machine firstcompacting the tobacco into a cylindrical elongate wad against aninjection spoon member which has a concavely curved crosssection withcontinued rotation of the handle then causing the spoon to displace thewad of tobacco into the cigarette tube.

To compact a small supply of tobacco for one cigarette into an elongatecylindrical wad, a compacting member is moved laterally with respect tothe spoon member and the tobacco wad is formed therebetween. Inaccordance with the present invention, and the prior patents notedabove, this is accomplished by means of a toggle link assembly whichmoves the compacting member from tobacco receiving position to tobaccocompacting position and the toggle link assembly consists of a number ofpivotally mounted toggle links secured together by a toggle arm withlongitudinal movement of the toggle arm effecting transverse movement ofthe compacting member. Two of the toggle links are pivotally secured tothe compacting member at one of their ends, while their other ends aresecured to the toggle arms, while two further toggle links are securedto one of their ends to the casing of the machine with their other endsbeing pivotally secured to the toggle arm.

During compaction of the tobacco susbstantial pressure is transmitted tothe various pivot points of the toggle links and toggle arm, and untilthe present, such apparatus has had to be made from metal strong enoughto withstand the forces encountered during compaction and durable enoughfor repeated operation, and in view of the fact that many of the metalcomponent parts have had to be specifically machined, the machines havehad to be priced accordingly.

I have made various attempts to utilize material other than metal in theconstruction of such apparatus, but until now, all such attempts havefailed because it has been found that materials other than metal do nothave sufficient strength to withstand repeated operations of the deviceunder the high forces developed during compaction of the tobacco.

These past attempts at utilizing a material, such as plastic material,other than metal have all failed because the pivots around which thevarious toggle links and toggle arm pivot do not have sufficientstrength to withstand repeated usage under the pressures present, and itis riot practical to make, for example, pivot pins of a metal materialand the toggle links and toggle arm out of another material such asplastics because of the high precision necessary for the operation ofsuch a machine, and the fact that by providing one bearing surface of amaterial which is much harder than the material forming a mating bearingsurface the material of lesser hardness soon becomes worn, and thenecessary precision is lost.

I have now found that it is possible to construct a cigarette makingmachine of this type completely of plastics material and which will becapable of functioning for thousands and thousands of repeated usageswithout failure or loss of precision and which can be molded fromplastic material using conventional plastic molding techniques with theresult that the machine may be more quickly and more economicallyproduced with lower cost to the consumer.

I have overcome the problem of high forces developing at the pivot studby providing circular bearing surfaces or shoulders adjacent each pivotstud or pin with the result that the forces encountered during tobaccoimpaction are borne by the bearing surfaces and not by the pivot studsthemselves, with the result that it is now possible to construct amachine oflong life and at lower cost thus resulting in an improvementin machines of this general type.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a cigarette makingmachine of domestic do-it-yourself variety which is made substantiallycompletely of molded plastic material and which is economical inconstruction and durable in operation.

It is a further object to provide a cigarette making machine of the typedescribed made substantially completely of molded plastic material andhaving pivotally mounted toggle links, toggle arm and tobacco compactingmember all molded of plastic material and wherein pivot studs aroundwhich these component members rotate are provided with spaced adjacentcircular bearing surfaces bearing the forces encountered duringcompaction.

These and other objects of the present invention will become apparentfrom the following description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates in perspective view a cigarette making machineaccording to the present invention, which is partially shown insectioned exposed detail for a better understanding thereof;

FIG. 2 is a bottom plan view of the machine shown in FIG. 1 with theoperating mechanism of the machine shown in tobacco receiving position;

FIG. 3 shows the machine in bottom plan view with the operatingmechanism thereof in a position injecting a cylindrical wad of tobaccointo a cigarette tube positioned on the nipple thereof;

FIG. 4 is a bottom perspective view of portions of the compactingassembly of the machine to provide a complete understanding thereof; and

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line V-V' of FIG. 2.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the machine consists of acasing 2 having an opening 4 opening into a tobacco compacting chamber 5provided therein and into which opening tobacco which is to be injectedinto a hollow cigarette tube (depicted at phantom lines in FIG. 1) isfilled. The casing is provided with a vertical shaft 6 carried therebyintennediate its ends, and a handle 8 is carried on the upper end of theshaft and is secured thereto by means of a cap nut 10.

The lower portion of shaft 6 carries cam plate 12 which is secured inrotation therewith with the result that cam 12 is rotated as a result ofrotation of the handle. The lower end of the shaft 6 also carries anoperating arm 14 which is rotatably mounted on the shaft, and thesevarious components are maintained on the lower portion of the shaft bymeans of a nut 16.

The cam 12 is provided with a cam slot generally indicated at 18 withthis cam slot providing cam surfaces 20 and 22 respectively. The camsurface 20 extends partially around the outer periphery of the cam as at20 and these cam surfaces are adapted for camming action with respect toa stud 24 provided on toggle arm 26. The cam 12 is also provided withupstanding flanges 28 and 28, the purpose of which will be explained inmore detail hereafter. The toggle arm 26 is pivotally secured to theinner ends of a first pair of parallel toggle links 30 and 32 by meansof pivot studs 31 and 33 respectively molded integrally with the togglearm, and the inner ends of a second pair of parallel toggle links 34 and36 are also pivotally secured to the toggle arm by pivot studs 31 and 33respectively. The casing 2 may be provided with curved recesses 37 and39 to receive the ends of the pivot studs 31 and 33 resspectively. Thetoggle links 30 and 32 are also pivoted at their other or outer ends topivot studs 38 and 40, respectively, while the other or outer ends ofthe toggle links 34 and 36 are pivotally secured to a tobacco compactingmember 42 at 44 and 46, respectively. The tobacco compacting member 42is slidable in the guide edges 48 and 50 as shown in FIG. 4, and it willbe appreciated that reciprocal movement of the toggle arm 26 in thedirections indicated by double-headed arrow 52 in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4,will result in movement of the tobacco compacting member 42 from theopen or tobacco receiving position illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 to theclosed tobacco compacting position shown in FIG. 3. The cam 12 issecurely and non-rotatably positioned on the shaft 6 which in turn isnon-rotatably connected to handle 8 with the result that movement ofhandle 8 in the direction indicated by arrow 54 in FIGS. 1 and 2 willresult in cam surfaces 20 and 20 successively bearing upon cam stud 24to move the toggle arm 26 to the right as shown in FIG. 2 to theposition shown in FIG. 3 wherein the tobacco compacting member is intobacco compacting position. Reverse movement of the handle 8 in adirection indicated by arrow 56 in FIG. 3 will, of course, cause camsurface 22 to engage with cam stud 24 to cause movement of the togglearm 26 from the position shown in FIG. 3 to the position shown in FIG.2.

The operating arm 14 carried by the shaft 6 is pivotally secured as at58 to a plunger link 60 which in turn is pivotally secured to one end ofa plunger 62 by means of a screw 64. The plunger 62 is formed at itsother end as an injection spoon 66, having a concave semi-circularconfiguration (see FIG. so that when the plunger 62 is in the positionshown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the tobacco compacting member 42 compactstobacco between itself and the spoon in a manner to provide acylindrical elongate wad. It will be seen from FIG. 5 that the leadingedge 42 of the tobacco compacting member 42 is provided with a concavesection so that then the compacting member and the spoon approach, thetobacco compacted the tobacco compacted therebetween assumes an elongatecylindrical form.

Movement of the handle from the position shown in FIG. 2 to the positionshown in FIG. 3 not only effects movement of the tobacco compactingmember to tobacco compacting position, but also effects movement of theplunger to the right as shown in FIG. 2 to the position shown in fulllines in FIG. 3 where the spoon is in tobacco injecting position. Acigarette tube is shown in phantom lines in FIG. 3 as being positionedon a nipple 68 provided on the machine and it will be appreciated thatin the position shown in FIG. 3, the spoon has injected a wad of tobacco(not shown) into the tube.

During injection of the wad of tobacco into the tube, the tube end isheld on the nipple 68 by means ofa bellcrank shaped cigarette tuberetaining lever 70 which is pivotally secured to the lower surface 72 ofthe tobacco compacting chamber by means of an integrally molded pin 76.The lever 70 is urged to a position where its tube engaging end 78 isheld in contact with the nipple 68 by means of the action of spring 80acting on stud 82 provided on the operating end 84 of the cigarette tuberetaining lever 70. However, in the position shown in FIG. 2, a stud 86provided on toggle link 36 holds the cigarette tube retaining lever 70against the action of the spring to hold the tube engaging end 78 of thelever away from the nipple 68. It is in this position that a cigarettetube is positioned on the nipple. However, it will be appreciated thatwhen the handle 8 is moved in the direction of arrow 54 as shown in FIG.2, that the hold ing action of stud 86 will be released, and the spring80 will cause rotation (clockwise in FIG. 2) of the cigarette tuberetaining lever so that the tube retaining end 78 contacts the nippleand maintains the cigarette tube on the nipple during the full injectionof the spoon and tobacco into the tube.

Although a full appreciation of the operation of the machine accordingto the present invention can be ob tained through a reading of CanadianPat. Nos. 643,473 and 723,945 mentioned above the following briefdescription is provided. When one wishes to make a cigarette, a hollowcigarette paper filter tube (shown in phantom lines) is positioned onthe nipple as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 and with the position of the handleas shown in these Figures, the tobacco compacting member 42 is in openor tobacco receiving position, and the tube engaging end 78 of thecigarette tube retaining lever 70 is in a non-contacting position withrespect to the nipple 68 as a result of stud 86 bearing on the operatingend 84 of the cigarette tube retaining lever. A supply of tobacco isthen placed through the opening 4 provided in the casing onto the lowersurface or floor 90 of the tobacco compacting chamber 5 and the handle 8is then rotated in an anti-clockwise direction in the direction of arrow54 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and this rotation results in the compactionof the supply of tobacco between the leading edge 42 of the compactingmember 42 and the spoon member 66 and also permits spring 80 to pivotthe cigarette tube retaining lever so that the tube engaging end 78secures an end of the cigarette tube between itself and the nipple 68.Continued rotation of the handle in the direction as indicated by arrow54 maintains the tobacco compacting member in tobacco compactingposition and also pivots operating arm 14 by means of flange 28 to causemovement of plunger 62 to the right as shown in FIG. 2 to inject a wadof tobacco into the cigarette tube as shown in FIG. 3. After injection,rotation of the handle is reversed (see arrow 56 in FIG. 3) and thiscauses withdrawal of the spoon 66 from within the tube and alsoloosening of the tube on the nipple so that the filled cigarette tubecan be removed from the nipple and also effects opening of the tobaccocompacting member to the position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Movement ofthe operating arm 14 from the position shown in FIG. 3 to the positionshown in FIG. 2 may be assisted by spring 67.

Attached FIG. 4 which is a perspective view of a por tion only of theoperating mechanism of the machine will now be described more clearlyset forth the bearing surfaces provided upon the tobacco compactingmember 42, the toggle links 30, 32, 34 and 36, and the toggle arm 26. Aswill be appreciated in FIG. 4, only links 32 and 36 are shown but itwill be appreciated that a similar arrangement for links 30 and 34 isalso be provided. The pivot stud 40 upon which link 32 rotates is moldedintegrally with the casing -2 and in order to withstand the highstresses encountered during operation, the outer end of the toggle link32 is provided as a circular convex bearing surface 32', with thecircular arc of the surface being received within a correspondinglycircular concave bearing surface 92' provided on a raised portion orprotuberance 92 which is also molded integrally with the casing of themachine. The outer end of toggle link 36 is pivotally secured to thecompacting member 42 by means of a pivot stud 46 which is integrallymolded with the compacting member. The outer end of the toggle link 36is provided with a convex circular bearing surface 36 which is insliding engagement with a concave circular bearing surface 94 providedon the contacting member.

The inner ends of both toggle links 32 and 36 pivot around a stud 33which is molded integrally with the toggle arm 26, and the inner ends ofthe links 32 and 36 are provided as circular bearing surfaces 32" and36" respectively, and the links 32 and 36 are also provided withcircular concave bearing surfaces 32" and 36" against which bearingsurfaces 36" and 32" bear. In operation, force encountered duringcompression of the tobacco act in directions indicated by arrows F F Fand F and it will be appreciated that the force is borne by the surfacesof the machine and not by the pivot studs. This arrangement enables thepivot studs 36 and 40 to be molded integrally with the casing, and alsothe pivot studs 44 and 46 to be molded integrally with the compactingmember in an economic manner not before possible when various metalparts, exclusively, have had to be used.

As shown in FIG. 4, the underside of the casing 2 is 7 provided withupstanding studs 96 and 98 which receive apertures (not numbered)provided in a member 100 (shown in broken lines) which is of moldedplastic material, and which provided a bottom for the tobacco compactingchamber and also provides a lower casing for the plunger and spoonassembly.

In construction, the casing 2, toggle links, compacting member, andtoggle arm, and operating arm 14, and cigarette tube retaining lever 70and handle 8 and plunger link 60 can all be fabricated from suitableplastic material using molding techniques known in the plastic moldingarts, and this arrangement clearly provides apparatus which can beproduced at a lower cost than before possible. In a preferredconstruction, however, the cam 12 and the stud 24 provided on the togglearm are made of metal material inasmuch and as discussed above, oppositebearing surfaces of materials of different hardness will result in unduewearing of the surface made of the softer material.

I claim:

1. A cigarette making machine of the type wherein a compacted wad oftobacco of elongate generally cylindrical shape is injected into acigarette paper tube, comprising a casing and a hollow nipple secured tothe casing to receive an open end of a cigarette tube, a tobaccocompacting chamber formed within the casing and an opening in the casingproviding access to the chamber, and a tobacco compacting member movablein the chamber to tobacco receiving and tobacco compacting positions,and toggle links means consisting of a toggle arm, and first and'secondpairs of toggle links for moving the tobacco compacting member, and amovable plunger and attached injection spoon for moving a wad of tobaccofrom the chamber through the nipple and inject the wad into thecigarette tube, and an operator arm for moving the plunger and spoon,and a cigarette tube retaining lever pivotable under spring action toretain the cigarette tube on the nipple during injection thereinto of awad of tobacco, and a handle secured to a cam plate having cam surfaces,rotational movement of the handle resulting in rotation of the cam plateand movement of the operator arm, and a cam stud carried adjacent oneend of the toggle arm and in contact with the said cam surfaces whereinrotation of the cam plate imparts movement to the toggle link means,inner ends of said two pairs of toggle links being pivotally secured topivot studs provided on the toggle arm, with outer ends of the firstpair of toggle links being pivotally carried by pivot studs provided onthe casing, and outer ends of the second pair of toggle links beingpivotally secured to pivot studs provided on the tobacco compactingmember, and circular bearing surfaces provided on the casing and on thetobacco compacting member for sliding engagement with circular bearingsurfaces provided on the outer ends of the said first and second pairsof toggle links, inner ends of the toggle links of the first pair insliding engagement with circular bearing surfaces molded integrally withand adjacent inner ends of the toggle links of the second pair, andcircular bearing surfaces provided on inner ends of the toggle links ofthe first and second pairs in sliding engagement with circular bearingsurfaces provided on and adjacent inner ends of the toggle links of thesecond and first pairs respectively, the circular bearing surfacesbearing reactive forces resulting from compacting of tobacco into a wad.

2. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the casing, the tobaccocompacting member, the toggle arm, and the toggle links are of plasticmaterial.

3. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the circular bearing surfacesprovided on the casing and the tobacco compacting member are of concavecircular configuration and the bearing surfaces provided on the outerends of the toggle links are of convex circular configuration.

4. Machine according to claim 1 wherein the circular bearing surfacesprovided on the inner ends of the toggle links are of convex circularconfiguration, and the circular bearing surfaces provided on andadjacent the inner ends of the toggle links are of concave circularconfiguration.

5. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the handle, operator arm,plunger, plunger link, tube retaining lever, are of plastic material.

6. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the cam plate and the cam studare made of metal.

1. A cigarette making machine of the type wherein a compacted wad oftobacco of elongate generally cylindrical shape is injected into acigarette paper tube, comprising a casing and a hollow nipple secured tothe casing to receive an open end of a cigarette tube, a tobaccocompacting chamber formed within the casing and an opening in the casingproviding access to the chamber, and a tobacco compacting member movablein the chamber to tobacco receiving and tobacco compacting positions,and toggle links means consisting of a toggle arm, and first and secondpairs of toggle links for moving the tobacco compacting member, and amovable plunger and attached injection spoon foR moving a wad of tobaccofrom the chamber through the nipple and inject the wad into thecigarette tube, and an operator arm for moving the plunger and spoon,and a cigarette tube retaining lever pivotable under spring action toretain the cigarette tube on the nipple during injection thereinto of awad of tobacco, and a handle secured to a cam plate having cam surfaces,rotational movement of the handle resulting in rotation of the cam plateand movement of the operator arm, and a cam stud carried adjacent oneend of the toggle arm and in contact with the said cam surfaces whereinrotation of the cam plate imparts movement to the toggle link means,inner ends of said two pairs of toggle links being pivotally secured topivot studs provided on the toggle arm, with outer ends of the firstpair of toggle links being pivotally carried by pivot studs provided onthe casing, and outer ends of the second pair of toggle links beingpivotally secured to pivot studs provided on the tobacco compactingmember, and circular bearing surfaces provided on the casing and on thetobacco compacting member for sliding engagement with circular bearingsurfaces provided on the outer ends of the said first and second pairsof toggle links, inner ends of the toggle links of the first pair insliding engagement with circular bearing surfaces molded integrally withand adjacent inner ends of the toggle links of the second pair, andcircular bearing surfaces provided on inner ends of the toggle links ofthe first and second pairs in sliding engagement with circular bearingsurfaces provided on and adjacent inner ends of the toggle links of thesecond and first pairs respectively, the circular bearing surfacesbearing reactive forces resulting from compacting of tobacco into awad.
 1. A cigarette making machine of the type wherein a compacted wadof tobacco of elongate generally cylindrical shape is injected into acigarette paper tube, comprising a casing and a hollow nipple secured tothe casing to receive an open end of a cigarette tube, a tobaccocompacting chamber formed within the casing and an opening in the casingproviding access to the chamber, and a tobacco compacting member movablein the chamber to tobacco receiving and tobacco compacting positions,and toggle links means consisting of a toggle arm, and first and secondpairs of toggle links for moving the tobacco compacting member, and amovable plunger and attached injection spoon foR moving a wad of tobaccofrom the chamber through the nipple and inject the wad into thecigarette tube, and an operator arm for moving the plunger and spoon,and a cigarette tube retaining lever pivotable under spring action toretain the cigarette tube on the nipple during injection thereinto of awad of tobacco, and a handle secured to a cam plate having cam surfaces,rotational movement of the handle resulting in rotation of the cam plateand movement of the operator arm, and a cam stud carried adjacent oneend of the toggle arm and in contact with the said cam surfaces whereinrotation of the cam plate imparts movement to the toggle link means,inner ends of said two pairs of toggle links being pivotally secured topivot studs provided on the toggle arm, with outer ends of the firstpair of toggle links being pivotally carried by pivot studs provided onthe casing, and outer ends of the second pair of toggle links beingpivotally secured to pivot studs provided on the tobacco compactingmember, and circular bearing surfaces provided on the casing and on thetobacco compacting member for sliding engagement with circular bearingsurfaces provided on the outer ends of the said first and second pairsof toggle links, inner ends of the toggle links of the first pair insliding engagement with circular bearing surfaces molded integrally withand adjacent inner ends of the toggle links of the second pair, andcircular bearing surfaces provided on inner ends of the toggle links ofthe first and second pairs in sliding engagement with circular bearingsurfaces provided on and adjacent inner ends of the toggle links of thesecond and first pairs respectively, the circular bearing surfacesbearing reactive forces resulting from compacting of tobacco into a wad.2. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the casing, the tobaccocompacting member, the toggle arm, and the toggle links are of plasticmaterial.
 3. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the circular bearingsurfaces provided on the casing and the tobacco compacting member are ofconcave circular configuration and the bearing surfaces provided on theouter ends of the toggle links are of convex circular configuration. 4.Machine according to claim 1 wherein the circular bearing surfacesprovided on the inner ends of the toggle links are of convex circularconfiguration, and the circular bearing surfaces provided on andadjacent the inner ends of the toggle links are of concave circularconfiguration.
 5. Machine according to claim 1, wherein the handle,operator arm, plunger, plunger link, tube retaining lever, are ofplastic material.